What's Wrong, Yusei?
by SoccerChick1918
Summary: Along with the stress of the oncoming WRGP, Yusei is hiding a guilty secret from his friends that is slowly chipping away at his sanity and well- being. Will they be able to help him conquer the demons within or will they only make things worse for them all? Takes place before WRGP story arc. Sorry, suck at summaries, etc. etc..Please read and review!
1. Inside my Head

Hello! I'm new to and although I've read many stories, this is my first one! I have always been a fan myself of angsty- type fanfiction and Yugioh 5ds... this idea just popped into my head one day. My inspiration?_ Lose My Mind_ by the WANTED. It's an amazing song. Anyway..critique is always welcome here, and let me know if this story is worth continuing.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh 5ds or the WANTED for that matter...simply a free fanfiction. Also, the cover picture belongs to the original owner; I just borrowed it from the Internet.

-regular text-

_-/thinking/-_

Chapter One- Inside My Head (third POV)

Yusei sighed as he (once again) locked his bedroom door. The house was eerily quiet, lacking in its normal loudness due to Crow and Jack's constant bickering. Thankfully, both of his friends had believed him and had gone on a particularly long "errand" of his. Yusei sighed again, absently running a hand through his black and yellow-streaked hair.

/_My friends. I shouldn't be deceiving them like this/._ The boys knew (under the threat of Martha) that they were to look out for one another, and to lie to his friends would be like lying to his brothers. But Yusei knew this was the only way to prevent them from worrying about him.

Sighing again, he sat on his bed, the wooden structure groaning in protest along with the added weight. Yusei rested his elbows on his knees, and cradled his head in his hands, bracing himself for the onslaught of memories that always seemed to assault him at least once every day; and it had almost become routine.

Then it hit him. He cringed, biting his lip as the pain wracked his body in waves, and his mind was attacked with the never ending memories that seemed to play over and over inside his head. He flinched as he heard people crying out, terrified, as they were ripped forcefully from their loved ones as a gigantic crack split New Domino and what is now known as Satellite in half. He covered his ears as they screamed, tears streaming down their faces while they ran for their lives, only to be swallowed by the menacing white light, never to return.

_/Stop, make it stop, please.../ _Yusei silently pleaded in his head, begging for the torture to end as he witnessed more death, more heart breaks, and overwhelming sadness that threatened to consume him.

Suddenly the excruciating pain in his head reached a new extreme, and he allowed himself a small whimper. Never more than that; he forced himself to suffer in silence, as that was just the person he had come to be.

Then as suddenly as the episode came on it was gone, or so he thought.

Rising from his crouched position, Yusei glanced at the clock on his nightstand, which read 4:03 PM. The attack had lasted only about and hour and a half; which made Yusei's shoulders slump in relief as all the tension finally drained out of them. But that moment was over shortly as Yusei forced his sore body to rise from the bed, even though every movement caused his body to scream in protest. Padding downstairs into the kitchen, he grabbed himself a glass of water, and headed to the garage.

_/Now, to fix Jack's runner_..._/_

A/N: So? how was it? Great? Terrible? Feedback is always appreciated. let me know if you think this is worth continuing; I can take critique. I was planning to incorporate some Jack/ Crow but only if you like the story so far.


	2. Suspicions

A/N below! Chapter 2 is now up and running!

Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh 5ds, let's just say if I did, it wouldn't be the same.. ;D

-talking-

-_/thinking/_-

Chapter 2- Suspicions (third POV)

Crow pinched the bridge of his nose in pure frustration as the shop owner told him and Jack that he didn't carry the duel runner part they were looking for.

_Again- this is the third time this week_! Crow mentally exclaimed.

It seemed that, whatever store the two went to, they never carried the part that they needed- and it was more than a little irritating.

However, Crow's plan of simply leaving were foiled as his blonde- haired companion suddenly slammed his hands down on the counter in a not-so-silent challenge. Crow just rolled is eyes and silently counted down 'till the bomb went off.

Jack, purple eyes ablaze, ground out through clenched teeth, "What do you _mean_, "don't carry the part"?!"

The owner, looking more annoyed than anything at Jack's outburst, replied, "It means, sir, that the part you're looking for is not here. We don't carry it; and I'd suggest looking somewhere else for the item. Now, if you'll just move along, you're holding up the line."

Jack, being the egotistical person he is, started to shout something unintelligible at the owner, but was cut off when yanked aside by Crow, who had been quiet throughout the entire ordeal.

"What's the big idea?!" He exclaimed in his Australian drawl, obviously annoyed at the interruption.

Crow simply gave him a look before saying, "Just stopping you from making a fool out of yourself, _again_."

Jack glared at his orange- haired friend before childishly exclaiming, "He was asking for it!"

"What were you going to do, _your Highness_, throw coffee on him until he begs for mercy?" Crow taunted, not passing up the opportunity to tease his friend.

"Shut it, bird brain," Jack retorted, not missing a beat.

Crow, although scowling slightly at Jack's comment, was too lost in thought to reply, and was looking at Yusei's list and pulling out the other wadded ones from his back pocket to compare.

"Jack, look at this," Crow said abruptly, shifting so they both could see what was scrawled on Yusei's notes. Both duelists stared at the jumbled letters and numbers, argument long forgotten.

"Do you see it?" Crow inquired, hoping that at least he could catch on to what he was implying.

"What?" Jack (somewhat dumbly) asked.

"The pattern; I mean the one right here. You see? This week, and all the weeks before that, Yusei gave us the part he needed and what store to find it, but the stores and names are always mixed up. Yusei's a mechanic; he never messes up when it comes to duel runners and parts. See what I'm sayin'?"

Jack merely grunted before saying, "Ya know what? You might be on to somethin' there. I think Yusei must have somethin' on his mind for him to mess up like this- and it's clear that he doesn't want us to find out what it is."

Even though one might think that Jack Atlus had an icy heart, Crow knew that, deep down, Jack always had a spot for his friends, even though he was too proud to ever admit it. Both boys knew that, out of all three of them, Yusei was the one that was the best at hiding his emotions behind a carefully composed mask, and usually lied when it came to something that was bothering him, or when something was wrong.

In Jack's opinion, it was actually kind of annoying- I mean he had friends that he trusted right here, they were brothers right? Why couldn't he just be honest?

"Should we go back?" Crow asked Jack, hoping for his opinion.

Jack thought for a brief moment before replying, "No; if it was some kind of emergency Yusei would have told us- you know that. We'll finish up this first and then we can head back; but you can bet your pretty little carrot top head that when we get back I'm going to beat his ass until he spills what's on his mind." He even brought down his fist onto his other palm for emphasis, and Crow chuckled. He knew that Jack was extremely stubborn and once he had his mind set, there was no going back.

This was going to be an interesting afternoon.

A/N: There's the second part! Although I already had this one typed up I have absolutely nothing planned next for this story; so updates won't be as quick. I'd appreciate anyone's ideas and input they might have, and once again, criticism is always welcome here :D Please read and review!


	3. Voices

Hello all! Sorry for not updating in so long! Personal life...but I'll spare you the details. A shout out to Xerxes Glace Hydro for proofreads and advice! *claps* Anyway, here's the chapter- please remember to read and review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh 5ds, never did, and (sadly) never will...

-regular talking-

-**spirits talking**- (you'll know it when you see it)

-_/thinking/_-

Chapter 3- Voices (third POV)

Back at Zora's, Yusei was busily tinkering away at the Wheel of Fortune, trying to figure out a way to increase the speed without completely blowing out the engine.

However, he was so into his work that he didn't notice Jack and Crow walk through the door, Crow casually with his hands behind his head, and Jack, hands stuffed into his pockets, muttering something under his breath about "stupid shop owners."

"Hey Yus', got the parts you wanted," Crow reported, placing a bag of mixed odds and ends on the table next to him.

All he received in response was a murmur of incoherent calculations under Yusei's breath as he moved to the computer and began rapidly typing away, still unaware of the other two's presence. Crow resisted to roll his eyes in amusement at the other's inattentiveness.

Walking up beside his dark- haired friend, Crow reached across the screen and waved his hand right in Yusei's face.

"Hey Yus'? You in there? Earth to Yusei!"

Startled, Yusei recoiled back, almost running over Crow with his chair in the process.

"Whoa there buddy! Not so fast! You almost had me killed!"

_/Guess I'm just jumpy from that last episode; must be an after-effect.../_ Yusei thought.

Quickly masking his inner uneasiness, Yusei sheepishly scratched the back of his head with one gloved hand and replied, "Yea, sorry 'bout that."

Just then a sarcastic mutter came from the corner of, "At least we would be rid of the loudmouth around here," and Crow immediately whipped around to meet a vaguely amused Jack standing with his arms crossed, leaning casually against the wall. A smirk was planted on his confident features.

"Is that a challenge, blondie?!" Crow immediately responded, and then the two were off yelling at each other, and Yusei could only just watch them go at it, knowing that he wouldn't stand a chance in trying to intervene.

Spinning around, Yusei attempted to once again immerse himself in his work, while simultaneously trying to ignore the heated screaming match that was going on behind him. He casually reached for his glass of water when a voice seemed to echo from inside his head.

"**Yusei..**" an unfamiliar voice whispered, and Yusei nearly jumped out of his skin.

Hand in mid reach, he just shook it off, downing the water in one gulp.

_/That episode earlier today must have shaken me up more than I thought. I'm probably just a little jumpy../_ Yusei thought, disbelieving that someone had called his name, yet at the same time knowing that neither Jack or Crow had been the one who spoke.

But, as he turned back to his work, his head was invaded by yet another voice, this one filled with malice and hatred.

"**It's all _your_**** fault!**" The voice screamed, and Yusei's head snapped up from his workplace as he whirled around, cobalt eyes scanning the room for something that would explain what he just heard.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

This movement didn't go by without being noticed by Jack, who happened to be facing Yusei at the time. But he made no sign that he saw his friend's distress as he continued his pointless banter with Crow, who had his back to Yusei.

_/Crow was right; there's something not quite right here.../_ Jack thought, and he made a mental vow that he would find out what was going on, and he would make Yusei tell them what he was really doing these days.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Suddenly, Yusei's head became utter chaos as thousands upon thousands of shouting voices erupted inside his head, and through the cacophony of voices inside and outside his head (as Crow and Jack's dispute was still going on) he was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of noise.

"**Your _genius_ father just had to come along and ruin everything, didn't he?!**"

"Very funny Jack; says the guy who spends a full _hour_ in the bathroom every morning just to do his hair!" Crow accused.

"**You survive and we do not! How is this considered fair?!**"

"Well at least I have some class; your hair looks like you stuck your finger in an electric socket- but then again I wouldn't be surprised if you actually did." Jack sarcastically replied.

"**_Demon_ spawn!**"

The insults kept coming, and Yusei could do nothing except helplessly let each insult and hurtful word cut deep as the mockery and derision of himself and his father continued. The voices verbalized their sorrows and anger at what the accident with Momentum had done to them all, and Yusei felt a dull ache thrum through his body as the mental abuse continued.

Then, along with the pain and the deafening noise, there were gruesome images that came and went, none of them lingering at the forefront of Yusei's mind before quickly being replaced by another.

A young girl, holding a doll, looking no more than five weeping at the feet of what looked like her dead parents as the rain poured down relentlessly.

A teen with only one arm, hobbling through the mass of fallen bodies, staggering until he fell in his own blood; never to rise again.

People running, but not fast enough, as buildings collapsed right on top of them. An arm, twitching convulsively as its owner lived out the last moments of his life being crushed, then abruptly ceasing all movement as it flopped uselessly to the ground.

And they kept coming; the crying, sobbing survivors, the wails that were torn from their throats; the dead, eyes dull and glazed over as they continued to stare away, yet seeing nothing...

Yusei let his head fall into his hand as he tried to ease the oncoming headache that was quickly escalating into the worst migraine that he had ever had. Tanned fingers tangled themselves within dual- colored hair and grabbed hold; Yusei could barely restrain himself from screaming right then and there in agony- he was in more pain than when he got stabbed with a metal shard in his duel with Kalin.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

When Crow saw that Jack didn't respond to his last insult of "pretty boy" he knew something was up. Now that he thought of it, Jack wasn't even _looking_ at him, his gaze was set on a spot behind his right shoulder.

"What?" Crow asked, and Jack's only reply was to nod his head in the direction he was currently staring at.

Turning around slowly, his eyes widened as he took in the sight that he was confronted with.

Yusei, who was now facing them in his chair, looked just about anything but okay. Body tense, his elbows now on both his knees, hands cradling his head. His head was bowed as shaking hands dug into his hair, bangs covering his eyes.

Crow ran over to him, bending down and gently shook his distressed friend.

"Yusei! What's wrong buddy?! Yusei!"

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Crow's voice only worsened Yusei's situation, and the voices in Yusei's head sensed the concern in his friend's voice, and their jeers attacked him, but now with a new purpose. Yusei just squeezed his eyes shut- crying was against the rules now- and endured it.

"**Oh, so the demon has friends? That's a laugh..**"

"**Lies! As if they would actually befriend the offspring of such evil..**"

Hearing this, that's when Yusei just about had it. They-whoever they were- could insult him; he could take that. Heck, he could even take insults to his father, but his friends was where he drew the line. His friends, his comrades, whom he held dear to him, whom he held his treasured bonds with...

Misery changing into anger in an instant, Yusei jumped up from his seated position, knocking over his chair and a very surprised Crow in the process.

Face contorted in some unknown emotion to the two others, Yusei growled out in a very unlike-Yusei-way, "Shut. The hell up."

And with that, and ignoring the stunned stares of his friends, he mounted his signature red duel runner and took off, peeling out of the garage and disappearing into the night.

A/N: So? What did you think? I did add certain lines to separate the POVs; hopefully this prevented any confusion. I tried to go for a slighter- longer chapter; I know some readers were asking for it. Please read and review! I'd love to hear your thoughts on the story so far.


	4. Darkness and Resolve

A/N: I apologize for the extremely late update, excuses at the bottom...but anyway, on with the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything- except my complicated thoughts and plot!

-talking-

-_/thinking/_-

Chapter 4- Darkness and Resolve

By the time Yusei turned around on his runner, it was very dark, and he was quite a ways away from where he started.

Mind finally at ease, Yusei was glad that his mind was empty of crazy voices; they were starting to make him question his own sanity.

_/I should probably head back.../_ he thought as he went along, the wind gently caressing his face and making his coat flap in the wind.

It was here, just riding, that Yusei was able to clear his head and think about nothing except the road in front of him and the bike beneath him; and all of his problems just seemed to melt away.

And although it was a type of escape for him, all good things eventually end, and Yusei dreaded going back to Zora's and facing his suspicious friends- after his outburst how could they not be?- and lying to their faces. Again.

The thought made Yusei grimace as he stepped on the gas and sped along the street, trusting his ability to drive in the almost- pitch black night.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Meanwhile, his friends, after witnessing in Yusei's strange behavior, were in the kitchen area eating a meager meal in utter silence as both pondered over the afternoon's events. As both of them were not currently in possession of a functioning runner, they had no choice but to wait it out until Yusei returned.

Crow, for once not really all that hungry, dropped his fork with a clatter and leaned back, crossing him arms and heaving a small sigh. Jack glanced up from his plate.

"What are we gonna do?" he asked out loud, more to himself than anyone else. Jack knew exactly what, or really who, he was talking about without asking. Being a person who wasn't really used to caring about much of anything, much less anything this serious, Jack didn't have a reply. But Crow continued on, stressed out with the problem at hand.

"I mean, he just freaking ran out of the house after we saw that he's obviously not okay! How long has this been going on?! I don't even- hey!" Crow cut off, all but yelling as Jack reached across the table and snatched Crow's fork from his plate, loudly snapping the utensil in half.

"What was that for?!" he exclaimed, and Jack was silent as he placed the now broken fork on the table.

"To get you to shut up," Jack replied bluntly, and Crow could only stare at him incredulously.

"Now that your quiet... I think we both know that Yusei's up to something, but we both know that he's way too stubborn for his own good sometimes. So instead of screaming my pretty little head off about it, I'm actually going _do_ something about it. I'll handle this."

Crow only eyed him for a moment, almost inspecting him in the way one would a stranger. Then he spoke.

"I think that might just have been the smartest thing you've said all day..."

Mentally face-palming, Jack immediately retorted back, asking if Crow was questioning his ability to "deal with things". And just like that, the serious atmosphere between them immediately dissolved into nothing as the two returned to their seemingly endless arguing.

But, coming to stand at the end of the hallway where they would part to their separate bedrooms, both boys stopped bickering and paused a moment. As steely gray eyes met blazing purple, both owners gave a small nod before retreating to their rooms. There was now a mutual understanding between them; they were comrades. They were friends. They were brothers. They could get through this.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Carly, who was camped outside the café that Jack visited daily, collapsed over one of the outside tables and was snoring lightly when Yusei came around the corner. Startled by the sudden light and noise, the infamous orange- vested reporter yelped and clumsily crumpled to the ground in the dark as Yusei passed her in a streak of red and blue. Carly squinted through her trademark glasses as she stood back up, spotting the last glimpses of a retreating red duel runner and its owner.

"...Yusei?" She murmured aloud, and Carly sat back down in her chair, wondering what she just saw.

_/What's he doing out this late?/_ Carly wondered as she glanced at her watch. _/Speaking of time.../_

_/Ah!/_ Carly mentally exclaimed, quickly collecting her things and racing off into the opposite direction.

_/If I don't get this new story up by tomorrow, my boss will KILL me!/ _

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Rolling into the garage, Yusei got off his red runner and removed his helmet, crab hair once again returning to its gravity- defying state as he did so. Looking around, he was glad to see that both Jack and Crow were no where in sight, most likely they were already in bed. The relief he felt at not having to face his friends was so immense that he inwardly chastised himself for feeling so.

Making his way to his own room, Yusei removed his blue jacket and kicked of his boots as he sat on his bed, pulling out his deck and quickly rummaging through it until he found the card he was looking for.

Stardust Dragon, still captured in its card with the same dazzling picture it had always been in, stared back at Yusei with small, gleaming eyes. Squinting, Yusei brought the card near his face for closer inspection, confirming what he thought he first saw. In the upper right corner of it, Yusei discovered that there was a gooey, black substance that covered the card and the tip of Stardust's left wing.

_/Well that's odd.../_ Yusei thought, but he (for now) placed his cards on the bedside table as he wearily glancing at his clock, which read 11:37 pm. Yusei blinked in surprise; he had been gone for roughly 5 hours. Did his absence really go unnoticed by his friends? They didn't seem to care enough to chase him after him when he left...

But he just shook of the ridiculous thoughts, and blaming it on the lack of sleep, Yusei tiredly climbed into bed, ready to sleep in his greasy clothes from earlier. He found that sleep found him rather easily, and Yusei quickly let himself be consumed by darkness.

It would have been a peacefully dreamless night, if only a maniacal laugh didn't echo from the back of his mind, and Yusei was filled with a dreadful knowledge of what was to come. Suddenly, Yusei was seized with panic when he realized that he wasn't able to open his eyes.

A/N: I will try and make sure updates come more frequent, as exam week is finally over for me. All that I ask? Review, review, review! I love to hear what you guys think, and I also want to thank the people who have constantly reviewed. Listening to your comments always brightens my day! So please review and share the love!


	5. Horrors in the Night

A/N: So much for "updating sooner"...I'm afraid I don't have an excuse for my tardiness this time; but I do have to say that I honestly think that the quality of this one is the best of all of my chapters so far.. But of course let me know what you think ;D

Disclaimer: Don't own Yugioh 5ds or anything; if I did, it never would have ended!

-talking-

-_/thinking/_-

The night was cool, quiet and peaceful as the three duelists slept on; except for one black- haired Yusei, who found himself in the middle of a nightmare starting around 12:06 in the morning.

Tossing and turning, Yusei mumbled incoherent words as he threw off his sheets in his sleep.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

After being engulfed in darkness, Yusei found himself jolted to a standing position, swaying slightly from the quick impact with the firm, hard ground.

Before he could even get his bearings Yusei was slammed into by a blur of black and red. Flying back from the impact, he slowed himself to a stop by pressing the soles of his boots into the wood he now recognized the "ground" as- and skidded to a halt on one knee. Staggering once again to his feet, Yusei held his left side in slight pain as he craned his neck to survey who- or what- had attacked him.

He was, as he had determined before, on a long, rickety bridge that looked unsteady and was surrounded by tall, looming cavern walls. Looking down, and almost immediately regretting it, Yusei could only guess how far they were up; to fall would mean instant death. But also below them was this strange, almost mystical glowing white light, and pooled below them it was intermingled with different changing colors. Streaks of this "light" also spiderwebbed up the sides of the cavern, and it seemed that this light was what enabled Yusei to see in the first place.

Just then a deep voice caught his attention.

"Still dancing with your demons, eh, Fudo?"

Cobalt eyes wide with recognition, Yusei's head snapped up to face a smiling Rudger, who was wearing the same Dark Signer attire when Yusei first had the pleasure of dueling him. With purple markings all over his arms and the white part of his eyes an ebony black, Rudger looked more demon than human. Directly behind him was his signature monster, the giant spider Earth Bound Immortal, which had attacked Yusei only moments earlier. As much as Yusei wanted to just run away right then and there, he didn't; he wouldn't give this man the satisfaction knowing that a mere look at his unruly appearance was enough to send chills up his spine.

And, to add to the irony of it all, Yusei didn't have his deck or duel disk at hand; he had no way to protect himself.

"What do you want, Rudger?" Yusei asked sternly, and a tiny part of him took pride in the fact that his voice came out calm and steady, sounding more confident in this situation than he actually felt.

But Rudger just raised his hand silently, and like death itself, his Earthbound Immortal was upon Yusei once again.

Too fast for Yusei to even comprehend, it struck out and hit Yusei, this time in the middle, and he felt, or rather heard, as one of his lower ribs painfully cracked.

Barely stifling a cry, Yusei crouched over, and coughing into his hand he tasted the coppery taste of his own blood. Bracing himself for another hit, Yusei waited, but one never came.

Slowly, through the agonizing pain, he straightened up cautiously and once again faced Rudger, who seemed to take pleasure in his pain.

Irises ominous, stormy gray islands in seas of black, Rudger's voice echoed around the cavern walls.

"Why won't you scream for me, Yusei? I want to hear you yell for me like the Momentum victims did before they died, the ones that your precious father-"

Yusei had heard just about enough of the Dark Signer's nonsense.

"Just shut your trap, Rudger," Yusei spat defiantly, but this outburst only brought about a smirk and a single raised eyebrow from Rudger.

"Ah, struck a nerve, did I?" Rudger taunted knowingly, and Yusei gritted his teeth in response as he continued to talk.

"Your father..."

"Was completely innocent in the Momentum incident, if I heard correctly from you," Yusei interjected coldly, and he stared Rudger down, feeling a vague sense of dejà vu in the situation itself.

"And who's to say he isn't?" Rudger replied, only adding to Yusei's confusion.

_/He's just messing with me.../_ Yusei's mind reasoned, but he was half- curious to where Rudger was going with this.

"Your father was a great man, Yusei," Rudger started, "and his experiments with Momentum had the goals of only positive outcomes for the city. But, as we all know, it was an experiment gone horribly wrong. So many lives taken, so much damage done...damage that is irreversible."

He paused for a moment, as if to gather his thoughts, but Yusei knew better. Rudger was slowly twisting this story in his favor, and Yusei could only guess where this little act of his was going.

"And yet, out of all those lives, he chose to save you, his only son. He saved you, instead of trying to stop the source of the disaster; he chose one insignificant life over thousands of others. Quite selfish, in my opinion."

Now this was a completely unexpected turn in things, and Yusei was somewhat taken back by this new idea; that he shouldn't be alive, either, that he shouldn't have survived Momentum.

_/I should have...died?/_ Yusei thought guiltily.

_/...it would have been better...for everyone- more lives would have been spared.../_

But Rudger wasn't done with Yusei just yet, and he could see that he was slowly causing turmoil in the young duelist; and planting that seed of doubt was only the first step.

Snapping his fingers abruptly, a sound that resonated off the walls around them, Rudger smirked.

Slow footsteps were heard just behind Rudger's monster, and Yusei squinted into the looming darkness as a familiar figure emerged.

Yusei's eyes widened in surprise as he recognized the familiar gravity defying orange head, pierced ears and yellow-marked face that could only belong to one person.

"Crow?" Yusei asked in disbelief, but Crow didn't respond to Yusei at all, and his eyes remained shadowed over by his bangs as he kept his head bowed down.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Crow raised his head to look Yusei in the eye, and what Yusei saw made him take a couple steps back in horror.

Crow had the black filled eyes of a Dark Signer, and as he advanced on Yusei, his mouth twisted into a rather feral- looking smile that made Yusei's blood run cold.

"And he's not the only one..." Rudger murmured lowly, almost so quietly that Yusei was unable to catch it.

Just then, the clacking sound of boots on wood reached Yusei's ears, coming from just behind him, and he turned to see Jack, with the same menacing black eyes as Crow, walking toward him.

They both reached Yusei at the same time and glared down at him as if he was an enemy, not their adopted brother. Yusei could only stare back at them unblinkingly, unsure if they were real or a mere illusion.

"...He's right, you know..." Crow finally spoke softly, and Yusei turned again to look at him.

"What?" Yusei blatantly asked, and the two of them suddenly burst into a fit of unexpected, mad laughter, as if what Yusei said was some hilarious joke.

"That you should be _dead_, Fudo!" Jack suddenly roared, and as he said this he grabbed Yusei by his blood- stained coat collar and slammed him roughly against the side of the already teetering bridge. Yusei winced as an unpleasant pain jolted down his spine from impact, but he bit his lip and said nothing.

"I had everything taken away from me then, thanks to your father's experiment!" Crow shrieked with a sudden change in mood, and an image ran fleetingly through Yusei's mind before disappearing again: a younger Crow in Satellite, staring out to sea solemnly with his fists clenched next to his sides.

"We never knew family; just the fact that they were gone and it was all because of what your father did!" Jack loudly added, and once again this was accompanied by an image: a younger Jack, staring behind a tree at a happy family of four playing at the playground together. Although Jack's younger face was serious, his violet gaze held something akin to longing in it as he sadly watched from the shadows.

"Don't you see Yusei? We hate you." Jack finished venomously, and the words cut through Yusei like a knife.

"You're no 'friend' to us!" Crow added, spitting the word "friend" as if it tasted bad in his mouth.

_/This isn't happening!../_ Yusei thought desperately, but as the jeers continued, his mind could think of no other rationality to what was going on.

_/They...really do hate me... I knew I was a fool to think otherwise./_ Yusei depressingly thought.

Yusei then looked his two friends in the eye and said the only two words that he could in this situation.

"I'm sorry..." He said hoarsely, but this only caused Jack's shoulders to shake as he barely suppressed his laughter.

"_'_Sorry_'_? That's all you have to say to us?!" Jack mocked, and Yusei didn't reply.

"Well, if that's all..." Crow trailed off, and he gave Jack a wicked grin, which was instantly mirrored on his own face in the form of a devilish smirk.

"Have a fun time in Hell, Fudo," Jack said, and with these parting words he pushed Yusei off the bridge completely to fall towards that strange white light.

Suddenly panicking, knowing death was upon him yet grasping at nothing, Yusei plummeted to his demise, falling, the sound of insane laughter echoing around him, the white light growing closer...

White wasn't a comforting color. White could also be menacing, exposing, freezing cold; the color of death.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Bolting upright, Yusei panted heavily, drenched in sweat as he looked around his plain, navy blue room.

As he tried to slow his racing heart, Yusei's mind was flooded with images from the dream; the way 'Jack' and 'Crow' had acted, the words that had been exchanged. The way Yusei himself had acted, Rudger's theory.

Yusei shook his head, locking the dream in the back of his mind, wanting to just forget everything, but with it so fresh in his mind the effort was a waste.

Realizing that he refused to relieve that nightmare again, Yusei changed into his trademark clothes and went quietly downstairs, hoping he didn't wake the others. He was sure that neither Jack or Crow would appreciate being woken at 2:30 in the morning; it wasn't even light outside yet.

_/It was just a dream./_ Yusei thought, a last ditch effort to convince himself that it was just that.

_/...Right?/_

A/N: I LOVE reviews- please review; any questions and/ or feedback is appreciated :) and thank you to those who have been reviewing- you people make my day!


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